Death in the Family
by Miz-KTakase
Summary: Tales of the Bizarre #62. This time around, Hotaru Kokonohi is no longer a shrine maiden, but rather a pallbearer, who is hired to prepare funerals... for the unloved, at very low prices and budget. Hotaru's going to put her foot down on this heartless action. Even the dead can be loved! Rated M for blood, violence, and mild language.


One afternoon, two men in uniforms were rolling in an old man, covered in a white tarp, on a gurney. They were taking to the backway, in a brick building, near the middle of a rural part of town. The sign on the wall says "_Ochato Funeral House_".

A girl in long light brown hair, done in a ponytail, with hoop earrings and light makeup, wearing a black blouse and skirt, was playing the organ. She lightly played the organ, in a somber tune.

* * *

_Hotaru Kokonohi; occupation: pallbearer. In just a moment, you're about to see Miss Kokonohi giving happiness to the deceased. We all would be succumb to mourning, tombstone and tears, and the somber look of the bereaved. Generally, we cry at funerals, at a sensible loss, to a poor unfortunate loved one who will no longer walk the earth. It is simply a natural law, and we subscribe to it… Miss Kokonohi, however, breaks that law, and opens up a new way of happiness… in the "**Tales of the Bizarre**"…_

* * *

**_Tales of the Bizarre #62:  
Death in the Family_**

* * *

The door knocked, as Hotaru answered it. She asked, "Oh, gentlemen. What brings you here?"

"Miss Kokonohi?"

"That's me."

The men rolled the body in, as she said, "You're very late. I was expecting a delivery, like, a day or so ago… but lately I have been getting late deliveries."

The first man in a blue uniform said, "Well, I suppose I should tell you that it's 10,000 Yen for the services, 10 days after the burial, and we give you permission to construct the coffin."

He showed the form to Hotaru, and then said, "Now here. Here's where he will be buried, in your cemetery."

"Splendid." She nodded, "Perfect spot. Grave 636, near the Charity Section."

"Sign here." He said, as she signed it. But she paused and said, "Hold on… What about the name of the deceased?"

"Excuse me?"

"I'd like to know who the departed is, like, before I attend to the services."

The man said, "Well, it should be on the form… Here it is. Simon Kankuro."

"Kankuro… Age?"

"88."

She signed it and said, "May I trouble you to bring him into my living room?"

They rolled the body into her room, as she showed her to the main room. They lifted the gurney up, and Hotaru said, "Thank you."

The men leave, but she called, "Hold on! Gentlemen, what about the flowers? Or is it too soon?"

The man said, "Oh, that… Well…"

She stated, "Well, yeah. Flowers for the bereaved. And then there's a minister assigned, and mourners. It can't be a funeral without all that, and music."

The man explained, "Look, Miss, we were only hired to roll in Mr. Kankuro, nothing more. See, we're just paramedics from the local hospital, and we wanted to deliver him to you."

"So I figured. But, like, it can't be a funeral, without all this. I mean, he would be happy, resting in peace."

"That's not our decision. It's actually a charity burial, paid for by the county. It's 10,000 Yen for the formaldehyde and the ground, the suit, the escort, and the burial. We'll come back later for the stretcher."

"And the mourners? Will they attend?"

"_What _mourners?"

She was appalled, as she was upset, "WHAT? NO mourners? He must someone to love! Kankuro needs someone to love, since he lived a heavy life! A LONG, HEAVY, AND RICH LIFE!"

He explained to her, "Apparently, you never know what he is like. Thirty-nine years he was in the home. How many friends and family he had? Zero! And do you know how many letters he's received from his family? Zero! He has no family! You know what we called the ambulance he was rolled in, when we brought him here? A meat wagon!"

She glared at him, as he explained, "Miss, lemme lay it out for you. You can give him mourners, a band, and flowers… that's _your _business! Only don't do it in our account."

"It's _everyone's _business, if a man or woman dies!" Hotaru berates at them, "That's natural life! If a man and a woman dies, that's their business!"

"But this man dies, but it's _your _business now. Ten thousand for a funeral, buried in the ground, in a box, underground, and hole covered. Now, anything else?"

Hotaru nodded, "What about a marker? A stone? Or did the county go frivolous on, like, a tombstone for Mr. Kankuro? Answer me that!"

He laughed, "She wants a stone yet…" he chuckled, and then said, "Don't you get it, Miss Kokonohi?"

"You can't bury him, in an unmarked grave! That's like not marking out what you get in a mystery hot pot!"

"The county decided on a wooden marker, with the name of the deceased, date of birth and death, finely printed."

"Unacceptable! This isn't a funeral for a dead man! This is thrift! What else would you like, a poem?"

Hotaru boomed, "Thank you, gentlemen… Get out!"

The men leave, as Hotaru escorted them to the door, "And I will give the man a proper funeral, but I won't like it. Right this way."

The men leave, as the first man said, "Okay. I mean, you can just embalm him, if you like. Just, uh, don't expect a lot of people to come and mourn for him." They left the funeral home, and Hotaru slammed the door. She muttered, as she growled, "This again… Like, what am I, a discount funeral parlor? NO tombstone, NO mourners, NO minister, NO proper arrangements… This guy deserves to die happy!"

She went to the corpse and read the card, "_Kankuro, Simon – Age: 88… Cause of death: Pneumonia… No known relatives…_"

She leaned to him, and uncovered the old man, showing him in balding white hair and with his eyes closed. She whispered, "Simon, old man… This isn't like you. You lived 88 years of your life, and this world gave you a big stink. You lived 88 years, and that's a bare epitaph. You deserve _more _than a cheap 10,000 Yen funeral… You deserve a whole lot more. And I will give you that…"

She rolled the body away to another room, where Hotaru plans to give Simon Kankuro happiness.

**XXXXX**

A man in a gray shirt and jeans was digging the grave for Kankuro, as Hotaru was watching. She was near a wooden coffin, near the grave. They finished, as she called, "Okay, so put it in the ground!"

Two men carried the coffin and placed it down gently. One man in red and white said, "Sure is a light corpse."

Hotaru said, "88 years, light as a feather. Oh, probably about 120lbs., give or take. Wasted away…"

The coffin was placed down, six feet deep, as Hotaru took her leave, and then the men started to bury the body.

* * *

That evening, a thunderstorm was made, as a police car drove by the rural city. A policeman ordered, calling out on the radio, "_All units, we're on the hunt of an escaped convict. Block all major roads and make sure to capture the suspect._"

Hotaru was driving down the road, as she was heading back to the funeral home. She was halted by two policemen. One policeman asked, "You going somewhere?"

"Yes, I'm going home. Why?" She asked him.

"Stay safe indoors. An escaped convict is loose. He's considered armed and dangerous. If you see him, he wears a blue-green jacket, white shirt, and bleeding."

"Bleeding?"

"That's right. The guy went to a gas station, and he was shot by the attendant, about an hour ago. From what he told me, he wants to use a phone. If you see him, do not approach him. He'll kill you."

"I'll keep that in mind, officer."

She drove through, as the police was using roadblocks to capture the escaped criminal. As the police were surveying the road, a woman in all-black walked down the road, with an umbrella over her head, covering her face. The policeman called, "You there! Get to safety, if you can. An escaped convict is loose."

The woman walked off, in the rain, disappearing into the mist.

**XXXXX**

That night, a boy in the same outfit as the officer described was running in the forest, clutching his ribs, bleeding lightly. He was running in the rain, soaking wet, and with spiky brown hair. He arrived at the funeral home, as he saw a light. He headed to the building, as he heard a woman singing. He went to the window, hearing more of the singing going on.

Inside the building, Hotaru stepped out of a room, as she called, "I'll see you soon."

She went to the living room, but the boy smashed the window. He stepped in and aimed his gun at her, still clutching his body.

"DON'T MOVE!" He called, as Hotaru stayed in place.

She asked, "Sir?"

He barked, "I said, don't move! One more step, and I'll blow your head off for this! And your mouth shut, too!"

She was up against the wall, as he held her at gunpoint, "You're a singer, aren't you? I was listening to you. Who were you singing to? Huh? WHO?"

She shivered, as he barked, "TALK! WHO WERE YOU SINGING TO, WOMAN?"

She stated, "You said to keep my mouth shut."

"I did. But I want to know what you have in there! You got someone living with you?"

"Sir, please…"

He held her back and barked, "SHUT UP! Tell me, right now!"

She explained, "In there! Calm down! He's in the room, two doors down, to your left…"

He walked off, still aiming his pistol at her. He arrived at the door, as he spotted an old man in a black suit, sitting in place. It was Mr. Kankuro. The boy barked, "What the-? Who is this?"

He called, "Old man, get up! Get up out of your seat now!"

She walked to him, as she said, "It's fine. He won't do anything, sir… Well, not really…"

He then examined the body, and then groaned, "He's dead… He's a stiff. Why do you have a corpse? Or is he playing narc?"

"He can't harm you. No one is going to harm you…"

"Who is this man?"

"Simon Kankuro, 88… Deceased."

"Why do you have a stiff in your house?"

"That's, like, the term to use for a corpse."

"While we're on the subject, why is he dressed up for a party, or about to leave for another day at the office?"

"Well, he _was _to be buried, this afternoon, but I decided to let him live… Lest you be unruly of you to disturb him, while he is celebrating, in a manner of speaking. This is a funeral home."

The boy growled, "A funeral home… Great…" he seethed and winced, "Just what I needed… The way I see it, I'm pretty close to the right place…"

He dropped his gun, as she approached him. He cried, "DON'T COME NEAR ME!"

She said, "You're in pain, lemme help you."

"NO!"

He leaned down and picked up his gun. She asked, "Bullet wound?"

"A .44, yes. Right in the ribs… near the kidney… I'll live, but I'm bleeding heavily."

"Lemme nurse you back to health. I'm not letting you die, just because you're going to be bleeding to death. And word of advice, if you're gonna bleed, don't do it on the carpets."

"Don't look at me like I'm some sort of sick puppy!"

"I'm looking at you like a sick boy… a very hurt boy. That's a feasible distinction."

He groaned, "Look, lady, a deal… You give me dry clothes, a car, and a phone to let me call for half an hour, and I'll let you live."

Hotaru said, "No. I can't. The only car I have is a hearse. Even so, you couldn't survive an hour, the way you are now."

He griped, "ALL I NEEDED IS A WEEK'S REST! AAAAAAAAAAGH!" he winced in pain, as he groaned, "Is that all, Miss? A rest and a chance to breathe! But there are two sides of everything – me _against _the world…"

Hotaru said, "You need help. I want to fix that wound of yours."

He stated, "I know you don't owe me anything, but hear me out: You pick up the phone at any time, rat me out, and send me away, but do me a favor… just let me lie down… That's all…"

She stated, "Lie down? While you're bleeding? Out of the question. I'm fixing that wound of yours, and then I'll lie you down."

He moaned, "That's just it? You're going to give me a half hour, as I lie down and rest?"

She stated, "You're going to get mended by me, since I have a first-aid kit. You can lie on the sofa, after that. You can stay for as long as you want. I'm only doing this for your health."

The boy, badly hurt, was slowly walking back to the room he came in, and lied down on the couch. She approached him, and comforted the boy. She asked, "What's your name?"

He said, "Kazuki."

"Kazuki… Such a nice name… Though, if you die today, it'll be a nice epitaph on you… But I won't let you die, nor do I want to turn you in…"

He groaned, as he smiled, "Aren't you hospitable…"

He relaxed, mildly in pain, as he asked, "Say, how do you do it? Why the break here?"

"You were very young…"

"17…"

"Still very young. And to be bleeding to death in a funeral home…"

She treated to his wound, as she explained, "Bet it beats dying in the rain, and in the cold, right?"

He said, "Yeah, it does."

She asked, "You… have a family?"

He shook his head, "Only my father… but he doesn't care. Not at all. Other than that, nobody else."

"We share something…" She fixed his wound, as she said, "I didn't have a family either… Spend years of my life in an all-girls school… and I'll never forget those 16 years."

He asked, "So, lemme ask you? Why do you have a corpse in your room? This Kankuro man… why harbor that body?"

She said, as she bandaged him up, "He's happy. Beats dying in a pine box, underground. You get some rest, and I'll bring you tea. Just relax…"

Kazuki smiled and said, "Thanks." He called to her, "HEY! Just so you know… I'm doing 99 years to one… But I'm not going to be sent to jail for this. I'm innocent… but deep down, I'm a rotten apple. It's funny… I got to wait until the lights go out, and I'm a footstep away to hell. You understand? Until tonight, the only hand I got was the back of it."

She smiled, "No one will disturb you… You rest…" She nodded, as she held him, "I promise that no one will hurt you…"

Hotaru left the room, as Kazuki was lying on the sofa, resting from his wound injury that was mended. He slept, as she went back to her work.

* * *

Hours later, the storm was still going on, as Kazuki was sleeping in the sofa. Hotaru was singing again, only this time, it came from below, and far away. He woke up, as he was slowly walking to the sound.

"Miss?" He called, "Where are you?"

He walked down the hallway, as he was approaching a couple doors. He cried out, "Miss? Where are you?"

Hotaru called, "Down here! I'm in the basement!"

He rushed downstairs, as he called, "Miss, what are you singing? Where's the stiff?"

He arrived at a small room, with a huge black dining table, with Kankuro sitting in the table, along with five other dead bodies, dressed formally, and wearing party hats. Hotaru smiled, "Ah, you're awake. Did I disturb you? I was only trying to celebrate a party for our guest of honor…"

He then asked in fright, "What the heck is this? What-? Why are you-?"

He was speechless, as she explained, "Lemme explain… See, this man is the guest of honor… my father… And I invited these nice people…"

She showed him an old lady in a floral dress, "My grandmother…" and then a woman in black hair, wearing a beige blouse and a pink skirt, "My mother…" then showed two girls in long brown hair, in matching yellow and white dresses, "My sisters…" and then a man in a black suit, in black hair, "…and my grandfather…" She then explained, "We were all having a homecoming party for the man… My father… The father of the family…"

He then growled, as he explained, "They're dead. All of them!"

"Don't be frightened. Come on in." She smiled, "Down here, it's love and peace."

He boasted, "NO! THEY'RE DEAD! THEY ARE CORPSES! YOU HAVE A FAMILY OF CORPSES, BUT THEY ARE NOT YOUR FAMILY! YOU'RE AN IDIOT TO KNOW THAT! THEY'RE NOT YOUR FAMILY! THEY'RE DEAD! D! E! A! D! **DEAD!**"

Hotaru roared, "WHY? JUST BECAUSE THEY'RE DEAD, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEY DESERVE TO BE HAPPY? YOU SHOULD BE GRATEFUL FOR THESE PEOPLE!"

He stated, "This is insane… Why? Harboring these bodies, as some sort of life-sized dollhouse? You're a sick human being!"

She barked, and explained, "I HAVE A RIGHT TO GIVE THESE PEOPLE A PROPER HOME! They deserve to be happy, NOT be buried six feet under, with no love whatsoever! Is it because they don't struggle with living? They don't compete? They don't hate? Answer me! Is it because they know nothing of greed, tolerance, prejudice, and all that sort of rot? Out there, my son, out there is a graveyard! Out there, they kill and bury dreams! A whole world full of pallbearers! Lowly, sickening, and cheap! But down here, in this room, in this house… is a family. Down here… is love. I gave these deceased love and happiness, and I'm giving it to them. I don't care if these people are not my family! They deserve this love… because they don't get love from others… especially being treated as nobodies, being they are miserly, stingy, unloved, never without a care, not without a family… No! Out there, they bury dreams! In here, they are given love! Surely you understand that, my son…"

Kazuki was shocked, but was scared, "You… You're a freak! You say that you're a pallbearer, and yet… you care for these cadavers, like they are your own! Well, let me tell you something… Dead is dead, and that's all there is to it!"

Hotaru said, "Put the gun down. I advise you… I'm not going to hurt you, in any way. This place… is for the loved… and the caring…"

She offered to him to put the gun down, as Kazuki winced back. Suddenly, a knock on the door was made. She said to him, "Stay here. It might be the police."

She walked off, but he halted her, "NO! Let it be the police! I can't stay here…"

"You're still injured."

"Just let me come with you, Miss!"

"If it is the police, they'll probably come and get you!"

"I don't care! I can risk it, rather than this madhouse of a funeral home!"

"NO! I mean it! Stay here and be quiet!"

"I AM NOT STAYING WITH THOSE STIFFS!"

"Just stay with the family! I promise! No one's going to hurt you!"

"I said get out of the way! These are not my family! They're corpses! And I can't stay here a second longer!"

"Don't you understand? I'm trying to help you!"

Kazuki struggled to get through, but Hotaru stopped him. He cried, "GET OUT OF THE WAY! I MEAN IT!"

They raced up the stairs, as Hotaru blocked the stairway. She called, "NO! I can't! You're badly hurt, you're lonely, and you needed happiness!"

"I said I don't care! You're a freak!"

"Says you! I'm giving you a break! Now stay downstairs!"

"I mean it! GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

They struggled at each other, as they were fighting for the gun. Kazuki tried to shoot her, but she blocked him from firing. She groaned, "Don't… be… stupid! I want to help you!"

"YOU'RE INSANE!"

"I AM NOT!"

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

They continued to fight over the gun. Kazuki wants to escape, while Hotaru wants him to stay, despite that he's hunted down by the police. The police, dressed in raincoats, knocked on the door, as they were waiting for Hotaru to arrive. But no answer. The police left the home, until…

**BANG! BANG!  
**Two gunshots were fired. The police heard the noise and broke into the funeral home.

**BANG!  
**The door was blasted open, and they rushed inside. They looked around, as they saw a trail of blood on the floor, from the room to the basement. They went into the living room and saw the window destroyed, which was how Kazuki entered the funeral home. They followed the trail and headed downstairs to the basement, witnessing a shocking moment. Hotaru was with her party of dead bodies, along with Kazuki, lying in his chair, dead from a gunshot.

Hotaru smiled, as she was holding her chest, "Police… men… Good to see you."

The first policeman gasped, "Wait a minute… We heard gunshots and-. Why… Why that's Simon Kankuro!"

The second policeman shouted, "Yes! He was supposed to be buried, this afternoon! And that's Emma Tsuka! She's been dead for a month!"

The first policeman pointed at the woman, "And that is the Matsuda girls, the one that drowned in the ocean!"

Hotaru asked, "You recognize them all?" She then instructed, "The man, Simon Kankuro… died of pneumonia… He was a charity case. He was offered no charity… They wanted him buried without tears. And Miss Tsuka, she was a despised librarian, who knew only of the Dewey Decimal System, more than a human heart. Died at 46… and she's my mother… and with her twin daughters."

The first policeman barked, "Miss Kokonohi, these people were supposed to be buried!"

She explained, as she clutched her chest, "Yes… they were… but what of? They were supposed to be loved, _before _they were to be buried. Here, in this room, they will be loved, and forever loved… not buried… in a ground… in a pine box… ignored… being treated like the dirt they would be buried in… No, in this room, they have identity and place… and they are always loved, no matter what…"

She held up a glass and moaned, "We… we were just having a homecoming… for special people… My father…" she turned to a dead Kazuki and smiled, "My brother…" she then turned to the policemen and concluded, "And me…"

She removed her hand on her chest, and showed a gunshot wound, right at the heart. She moaned, "Me… the daughter… to… the father… of the family…"

Her mouth lightly bled from her lip, and she collapsed onto the chair, next to Kazuki. She, too, died, alongside the bodies she had taken, away from being buried and given a new lease of life, in happiness, as they were intended to, by her. Her final words were cut deep to the bodies she kept, because… while they had no happiness and love, before they died, Hotaru used her heart to touch them from within.

* * *

_In this room, it is a family… A family of many relatives, all who were given negativity, but were given love and honor… The father, the mother, the children, the relatives… all of which are given love and peace… They all have one thing in common… they're dead. But who says that the dead cannot be loved? In this room, peace of mind and happiness is in this room, not buried in a wooden casket, six feet deep. Out there, it is a graveyard, where dreams are buried… but in here, the love of those that passed on resonates here… in the "**Tales of the Bizarre**"…_

* * *

**_Good night out there… Wherever you are…_**


End file.
